Pages

Friday, October 28, 2016

I have heard great things about crockpot granola but had not tried it out until the other day. After a friend of Happy and Healthy with Fallon, shared with me several months ago about her version, I figured it was overdue for me to give it a shot too. I couldn't recall all of her ingredients so I just winged it! I'm delightfully surprised it came out great!

Before I share the recipe, I want to add that I am about 6 months from my 40th birthday and I made an agreement with myself to:

establish new, healthier boundaries

eat wiser

move my body daily

solidify my inner circle

foster new relationships and nurture existing

be laser focused in my business

Part of the eating wiser comes down to portion control and limiting added sugar. If it's added sugar, it must come from unrefined sources. The exercise portion will be more difficult. The last time I went all in, I injured my foot so it slowed my progress. But this time it's different. I've got my mind right and a deadline! The other bullets come down to self care 101!

So, I made this recipe in preparation for the journey to 40. I am glad that it turned out well and honestly, I wasn't thinking of blogging about the recipe until I was asked to on Instagram. So for those that asked for the recipe, thank you for asking, and here you go!

Friday, July 22, 2016

Oriental
dance, Middle Eastern dance, or Arabic dance, are ethnic names given to an art
form known commonly in America as Belly Dance. Belly dancing began 3,500 years
ago in countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea from Turkey to Morocco, West
Africa, Egypt, Greece & Northern India. The Arabs called it Beledi, which
means, simply, native dance or native rhythm. The Arabs mingled with all the
nations of the Near East & their musical life had an international,
inter-oriental character we call Arabian. In these lands, the passions of birth
& life & love are woven into every part of the culture with a special
earthy quality. The music is very emotional & free rhythmically, therefore
the dance, as a physical expression of that sensual, mystical music, is also
highly emotional & free rhythmically. The music reflects thousands of
regional customs, practices, & celebrations.

No
one knows the exact origin of Middle Eastern dance, but each culture claims it
for their own. The early Phoenicians did it, the ladies of the Pharaoh did it,
the Turks claim it as theirs, the Egyptians point to their ancient wall
paintings, sculpture, & artifacts to prove it was theirs. North African
tribal women danced in market places in hopes of winning the favors of
passers-by, sufficiently to get a few gold coins tossed at their feet. Then
they would sew the coins on to their belts & wear them when they danced. This
belt of coins would eventually become their dowry. It is also told that the
Belly Dance was performed by helpful village woman as another sister was giving
birth to a child. The dance served as a rhythmic, soothing reminder to the
woman in labor to use her abdominal muscles to aid the birth process.

Oriental
dance was introduced into America by Little Egypt at the Chicago Fair of
1893. She was not a true belly dancer. She
was scantily dressed & was one of the 'unique' acts that the Fair was known
for. However, she gave the dance a bad name by making it synonymous with
striptease. Americans had no understanding of Eastern culture, which also added
to the misunderstandings about the dance. It took more than half of a century
for belly dancing to recover from the shock of its introduction to the West. The
name of Arabic dance has been cleared & it is now performed with new pride
as an authentic, reverent, ethnic art form.

What
will belly dancing do for you? I have seen women's confidence blossom after
having taken belly dancing classes, as well as enjoying the 'sisterhood' that
occurs after dancing together each week. I have seen how men's hips, which are
often very tight, become looser due to doing movements that isolate that
area. Women also benefit in this area.
Belly dancing will tone your muscles, improve your posture, develop more
balance & grace in all your movements, increase your stamina, release
tension in your lower & upper back & neck, allow for creative
expression through music, improve your self-image, & it is a lot of fun,
too!!!

Cindy
Cote' was born in Trona, California & grew up in China Lake at the Naval
Air Warfare Center-China Lake. She attended Bakersfield Community College &
received an AA in Liberal Studies & transferred to San Jose State College,
where she received a BS in Recreation & Leisure Studies. After graduating,
she returned to Ridgecrest, California & began a job as Assistant
Recreation Director, working for the City of Ridgecrest Recreation Department. She
married & had a daughter & still lives in Ridgecrest.

She
became interested in Arabic music when she was 16 years old, due to babysitting
for a Lebanese family. This grew into an interest in Belly Dancing when she was
a senior in college, where she took her first Belly Dancing class. She took
more classes after moving to Ridgecrest & then began teaching classes for
the Recreation Department. Later, she began teaching at the Hi Desert Dance
Center & developed a performing troupe called Silk Road Caravan. During the
past 24 years of teaching, she has attended many workshops & classes in
many forms of Belly Dancing, as well as Polynesian, Spanish and International
Folk Dancing.

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Do you ever look with longing at someone else’s life and think, “I wish I could do that too.” I do. I often wonder how it would be to live a life of adventure, free of fear and full of courage. But when I pause to contemplate the definition of adventure and what it means to be courageous, I have to acknowledge the fact that I do approach my life with courage and fill it with adventure. And so can you. It’s all in how you look at things.

Wednesday, March 9, 2016

One of my family's favorite weekend breakfast foods is pancakes. Well, I do like french toast too, and I have a recipe using the Complete here that you may be interested. But, my every day breakfast is one of two things: 1) a Complete smoothie with added sources of plant protein or 2) pastured local eggs over medium with veggies on the side. I hope you enjoy this pancake recipe. Without buttermilk, they're not fluffy but they're still very good and even better with real maple syrup (mmm grade B is my favorite but hard to come by locally so I buy online).Ingredients:1 1/3 cup of flour (I prefer this)2 tbsp sugar (we like coconut sugar)1/2 tsp baking soda1 tsp baking powderpinch of sea salt1 cup of almond milk + *2 tsp1 egg1/4 tsp vanilla extract1/3 cup of vanilla Complete plant powder (or your choice)1/2 to 1 cup of blueberries (or your berry preference); partially thaw if frozen1-2 tbsp oil (we prefer coconut oil - buy any cold pressed brand)

Protected

Let's Stay Connected!

It's a Cinch to Share!!

CinchShare has made all the difference in my sharing on social media. 7 day trial for all new subscribers. Enter code: CSfreeto get a 30 day extension ---> a full 5 weeks FREE!

Keyword Search

Partner with Me - Raise Funds for YOUR cause!

You are only a couple steps away from receiving valuable tools that will help you learn and practice real solutions for better health from some of the most common problems faced by families today. Pair these solutions with a non-profit or wellness related cause that's near and dear to your heart by partnering with Conveying Awareness. The approved organization will benefit from 50% of the proceeds. Click the image for details.

Questions?

Member of my local Chamber

Tweets

Disclaimer

The content found on this website is for educational and inspirational purposes only and should not be used as medical advice. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation and you should consult a medical professional where appropriate.